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John C. Lamb: We have a right to decide on GMOs

Posted:
03/06/2016 11:40:40 PM MST

To answer Paul Danish's question ("Two questions for anti-GMO activists," Daily Camera, Feb. 24), we all are the "victims of GMOs." On the large view, GMOs are linked to corporate greed, corn syrup, and cancer. However, on the Boulder County level, we don't need "victims" to act. We, the people, have the fundamental right to decide what our community will look like.

The Colorado Constitution states "All political power is vested in and derived from the people; all government, of right, originates from the people, is founded upon their will only." The Declaration of Independence states that governments "derive their just powers from the consent of the governed." According to a 2011 independent Boulder County-wide survey, 71 percent of residents opposed GMOs in public open space. How come GMOs are used now?

The people's "will" is not formed without evidence. We see systematic corporate deceit. The tobacco industry persistently denied smoking's link to lung cancer, even though they knew it was true since the 1940s. The asbestos industry knew that their product killed people a long time ago yet continued to sell asbestos. We witness corporations buying politicians and governmental regulatory agencies again and again. That's why communities are now demanding their fundamental right to democratically decide what their community looks like. Briefly stated, we decide our future, not Monsanto or Encana.

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I urge the county commissioners to: 1) represent the will of the majority by prohibiting the use of GMOs on our open spaces, and 2) endorse the Colorado Community Rights Amendment to our state constitution, which will allow communities to decide over corporations and corporate-driven laws. The amendment guarantees that our current rights will remain untouched. The amendment is simple, democratic, and truly grass-roots. The amendment will soon be circulated for signatures to get on the 2016 state ballot. Read it on CCR@coloradansforcommunityrights.org.

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